A California legal professionals' union filed a lawsuit against the state last week over Gov. Gavin Newsom's in-person work requirement for state workers, citing environmental impacts.
The requirement, which Newsom enacted by executive order in March 2025, begins July 1 and requires all state workers to work in the office at least four days a week. California Attorneys, Administrative Law Judges, and Hearing Officers in State Employment (CASE) argues that in forcing more than 90,000 workers to regularly commute to state offices, Newsom is violating the California Environmental Quality Act.
CEQA, a statute passed in 1970 and signed into law by then-governor Ronald Reagan, requires that all public projects made by the state and local governments undergo environmental evaluations. It also includes a requirement that the state adopt all measures to mitigate those impacts.
The union alleges that the state has not completed or even started the required CEQA Environmental Impact Report, despite a State Auditor's report showing the governor's mandate would result in 15,115 additional metric tons of CO2 emitted per month.
Many of these impacted state employees have either been working remotely since the COVID-19 pandemic, have never regularly worked in a physical office, or may not even have dedicated office space to return to, according to the complaint. The defendants also noted the State Auditor report's findings that telework policies benefited state employees significantly.
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